Cincinnati—The statistics are staggering: One in six men will get prostate cancer during his lifetime, and more than 200,000 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year.

Although screening exams for the disease aren’t perfect, UC Health oncologists say they remain a valuable early-detection tool and urge men to get screened. During National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month (September), UC Health will host the following free prostate cancer screening events:

Saturday, Sept. 11, 2010

Noon to 3 p.m.

Jordan's Crossing (Allen Temple Senior Center)

7030 Reading Road

Cincinnati, Ohio 45237

Saturday, Sept.18, 2010

Noon to 3 p.m.

Kroger (Corryville)

1 W. Corry St.

Cincinnati, Ohio 45219

Saturday, Sept. 25, 2010

Noon to 3 p.m.

Jordan's Crossing (Allen Temple Senior Center)

7030 Reading Road

Cincinnati, Ohio 45237

The screenings are part of an ongoing community outreach program led by William Barrett, MD, a UC Health radiation oncologist and chair of radiation oncology for the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.

Staffed by attending physicians and radiation oncology fellows, the program provides screenings tests to men living in traditionally low-income, urban neighborhoods who may not have access to regular health care.

"The goal is to educate men about their risk for prostate cancer and make it easy to get screened. Our hope is that these men will encourage other men they know to get screened as well,” explains Barrett, who initiated the program in 2003. "Prostate cancer is very treatable—even curable—when caught in its early stages, but many men are wary of getting screened due to fear, lack of health insurance or misinformation.”

PSA is a substance released into the bloodstream from the male prostate gland. While low levels of the substance may be found in healthy men, elevated levels often indicate prostate cancer or something else, such as an enlarged prostate.

Letters explaining test results and any recommended follow-up actions are sent to each patient’s home and family physician. Men who have a rising PSA (greater than 4.0) are encouraged to see their family physician or a urologist for further testing.

Since the program’s inception in 2003, Barrett’s team has screened more than 1,400 men. Of those screened, more than 6 percent have had elevated PSA levels that required further testing.

African-American men over age 45 with a family history of prostate cancer are most at risk for the disease. When detected in an early stage, prostate is one of the most curable types of cancer. Still, the American Cancer Society estimates that at least 186,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer each year while 28,000 die from it.

Screening exams are given on a first-come, first served basis. Appointments are not required. For more information on screenings, call (513) 584-8216.

Financial support for the program comes from Western Southern Life Insurance and American Financial Group.